The younger online campaign of my world, starting in northern Europe; campaign started in late 2016.

Monday, June 12, 2017

On the Move

As you're trekking along, generally following the high ground with the lake, Store Stokka, on your left, you begin to hear a swell of movement coming up behind you. At first, it sounds like a rustling, but this is soon supported by an occasional boom that Lothar first identifies as the sound of a large drum being struck.

After this, there is a distant cracking and tramping, of many things moving through the woods, perhaps as close as two hundred yards. It is coming up faster than you are moving. "We have to run," shouts Bergthora, but this seems desperate, given that you know that these creatures can move faster through running and hopping than you can.

The party looks around and sees only the thick forest, the clumps of shrubbery and fat pines, obscuring the inevitable that is coming . . .

Impractical. It would be very hard to climb the spruce trees, given their nature, and the deciduous are mostly poplars, not thick enough to hide you. As well, you've seen that these creatures leap comfortably into treetops, and may right now be hopping above the ground.

There are places, however, where you could wedge yourselves into thickets of spruce trees and undergrowth. It would be uncomfortable but you would probably not be seen, even from above.

If anyone wishes to give me any weighty loose equipment, please do so: roughhousing an estimate of 30-odd feet per round of amphibian progress, I'll go stand behind a bush copse and work my Sanctuary spell, discharging it only once the noise gets close enough.

It is my only spell left, apart from Light, which I actually should have cast during the last combat, as a means of evening the odds in our favour.

I then intend to come out of hiding and get a good long view of whatever is pursuing us and where they are headed. The spell now lasts 8 rounds, but do tell me if this too is impractical, Alexis, the lay of the land can be ever so subjective.

No, not impractical. As the party loads their equipment onto Engelhart, I suggest that the cleric stand on the outside rim of the cover; whatever is coming may need more than 96 seconds to pass, the real time of the spell's duration. In which case, Engelhart will have to withdraw back into the thicket; until then, yes, a good long view is possible.

Does anyone else have some final preparations? Whatever is coming, it is a mere 12-20 rounds away (by Embla's heightened sense ability).

Now feels like the part where the ring either proves of benefit or the path to our undoing. Has it occured to you fellows that it may be a tracking device of sorts, that a centralized divination may know where each patrol is positioned?

I'd stash it somewhere, but making it look like it fell on the ground.

Individually, Embla, your stealth would mean they had to come within a certain number of hexes to spot you (usual calculation); but since you're standing with a lot of other non-stealthy persons, they would give you away. Stealth always depends on the worst person's stealthy roll when people are working together.

Remind Pandred tomorrow that she took a healing salve.

I'll argue at this point that you're as hidden as you're going to get . . .

It appears to be an attacking party. Engelhart estimates about 150 froglings in sight, some moving on the ground, some leaping from mid-tree to mid-tree. It is plain, from the movement of the trees in both directions, that there are perhaps three times as many as can be seen.

What's more, the froglings are supported by (as many as Engelhart can see) about twenty giant frogs, ranging from 200 to 500 pounds in size. These are bounding along beside the froglings, but not being ridden by the froglings; they're not mounts, but apparently pets or their version of frog hounds.

The froglings go by as a skirmish line ~ so surprisingly, it does take about a minute for the line to sweep through, so that you now find yourselves behind the attackers, listening to their sound diminish as they go away.

Did the cavalcade follow the direction of the rest of our troop? Can a runner go and link up with the soldiers or are they chalked as casualties to be?

I'm left thinking that this surge may have had little-to-nothing to do with us. Their now-unguarded camp beckons, and we can always make good our escape by making a sweep 'round the lake in the opposite (north?) direction.

Their direction of travel was generally the same as yours: they appear to be moving towards the group of soldiers you left behind.

Warning them? No, not possible. Even if you could get around their line to get a message, you're not capable of moving faster than they are. They'll reach the road before you could get a message there.

Here's a thought: Now that a huge force is between us and the soldiers we came down with, why not try to complete the mission we set out to do originally? While I'm under no illusion that their camp will be unguarded, they might let up on patrols around the (smelting operation?) fires. So we go back, scout out the fires, then head southwest to the road (hopefully avoiding further waves of frogs, and back up to Stavenger to report what we've found out.

Instantaneous posting! Though I think the druid that locked the frogs away was a frog himself protecting his people, not a human agent looking to imprison them. So I don't think there would be countermeasures in place in case the frogs did arise again.

That level of x.p. in comparison with Embla is really an indication of how much it matters that you take damage and that you give it. Pandred's strength helps with gaining x.p. and a couple of bad combats can make a big difference.

The subject on the table is still what to do. I'm sorry I haven't had time this morning, I've been managing some issues; I am off tomorrow, Thursday and Friday, though I have some appointments. We can get some play in, I can update Embla's heightened senses and perhaps something Pandred might gain once I roll her sage abilities.

Can I have a confirmation that you plan to head back in the directions of the fires, with intent to seek out the barrow? I'd like to make that decision very clear, if I can, before moving forward.

I will have Valda ask if some of the followers, those most injured, shouldn't try to make it to the coast on the southwest, where they can find one of the fishing hamlets there and get a boat back to Stavanger. I think I should get a 2d6 roll for each follower who has taken 1/3rd of their hit points in damage.

[good morning. I'm here, I'm awake, I'm starting to work on the campaign]

I am going to discount the bless, since once the combat is over, the players discuss the events, the bodies are looted, repacking occurs, and then the decision making process is begun, I'll rule the bless runs out. At any rate, it will eventually, and decisions made by those who are considering long-range concerns will have to make a morale check without the magic.

I'll be rolling morale checks for Fjall, Oddsdrakken, Petar and Valda. Of these, Fjall makes his check; the others do not.

In game terms, this will play as Valda speaking for Petar and Oddsdrakken, asking to be allowed to make their way to safety as best they can, to meet up with the party again in Stavanger. Once having reached there, they will try to re-obtain your stuff from the soldiers, if they have it, while communicating that the party, acting on behalf of the soldiers, got caught behind the enemy's attack. Are you, the party, willing to let them do this?

Still trying to fill out that table I posted earlier, I am looking Oddsdrakken's armor class and his total action points. I am looking for the same information of Pandred, as well as what Pandred has in his left and right hands.

Does anyone want to change their weaponry? I am going to go over previous comments, then try to update the table accurately. I am bound to miss something.

Is Engelhart going to memorize spells, all of them or some of them? I need a clear answer on this before we can move forward.